One of the biggest talking points during the 2024 Formula 1 season has been what’s going on within the Red Bull group.
Despite dominating on the track, the turmoil off it has seen Max Verstappen linked with a move away from the team, which would have been unthinkable a few months ago.
Talking to Sky Germany after the race, Red Bull chief advisor Helmut Marko was looking for positives in a race that didn’t go to plan for the Austrian outfit.
Max Verstappen suffered his first terminal technical fault in two years and retired just a few laps into the race.
His teammate Sergio Perez couldn’t capitalise and finished behind both Ferrari and McLaren cars.
In the sister Visa Cash App RB team, Daniel Ricciardo once again struggled to impress and is now in danger of losing his seat.
However, Helmut Marko was quick to praise Yuki Tsunoda, who was one of the highlights of the race in Australia and scored his team’s first points.
The Japanese driver has been faster than his teammate all season and added six points to his tally in Melbourne.
Helmut Marko praises Yuki Tsunoda after performance in Australia
Across a bleak weekend for the Red Bull group in Australia, Yuki Tsunoda was the one bright spark.
The 23-year-old is entering his fourth season in Formula 1 and is under pressure to prove he’s worth signing up to another contract.
His dream is to make the step up to the main Red Bull team but right now that seems unlikely.
However, any pressure that was on Tsunoda at the start of the season with Liam Lawson waiting in the wings has been transferred to Daniel Ricciardo.
He looked quick in practice and reaching the last session of qualifying was a sign that he’s really getting to grips with the car.
There were several key incidents throughout the race but Tsunoda was unfazed and appeared to secure a very promising 8-place finish.
Fernando Alonso’s controversial penalty bumped him up another spot and Marko has shared how he felt about Tsunoda’s performance in Australia.
Visa Cash App RB star Tsunoda starting 2024 F1 season in the right way
Asked about the Japanese driver, Marko said: “He was faultless from the first lap on Friday.
“He drove very consistently and had good lap times. It is confirmation that he is an absolutely mature Formula 1 driver.”
Daniel Ricciardo admitted during the weekend that he was ‘puzzled’ by how Tsunoda managed to extract so much more pace than him out of the car.
He’s already improved his chances of staying on the grid and in the Red Bull group that’s not an easy feat.
Former driver Christijan Albers has even suggested that Tsunoda is ‘very much underrated’ among the stars on the grid.
It’s also very telling that Marko called Tsunoda ‘mature’ after his performance in Australia.
An aspect of Tsunoda’s driving style for much of his time in Formula 1 has been his aggressive driving style.
It’s helped him pull off some great moves, but also cost him points as it did in Mexico City last season.
If he has developed that part of his driving style, then Tsunoda still has a long career ahead of him in F1.
The post ‘He was faultless’: Helmut Marko absolutely loved ‘mature’ driver’s display during Australian Grand Prix appeared first on F1 Oversteer.